Dear Andy & Erin,
We are thrilled to share positive news from Ethiopia. Earlier today Minister Zenebu, along with other high level MOWCYA officials, met with agency network representatives. In this meeting it was clearly expressed by Minister Zenebu that she does not plan to work to stop adoptions, but desires to focus on eliminating bad practice and continue to invest in good practice of Ethiopia adoptions. She reiterated that neither MOWCYA nor the Ethiopian Government plan to shut down adoptions within Ethiopia, and went on to encourage agencies to continue their work as normal.
We know this news comes as relief for many adoptive families in process. America World will continue to work on behalf of Ethiopia’s orphans and vulnerable children to place them into Christian homes. We expect MOWCYA will likely hold more meetings in the weeks to come and will continue to keep families updated with any new information. We are seeing several regions issue clearances for children to be adopted and are hopeful more will start soon.
America World is in full support of improvements to uphold the most ethical practices in adoption. We care deeply about adoptions operating with integrity and transparency. We will continue to support MOWCYA in their efforts to implement better parameters around adoption processes and safeguards against fraudulent practice.
We are glad to hear this news today, and know it has been a long few weeks for families since Ethiopia’s first statement about adoptions. Thank you for your perseverance throughout this month. Please feel free to contact me with any follow-up questions about this.
Blessings,
